--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd…" description: "\"Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd just stand up front and announce the numbers. They had me sing a little, but that was a horrible mistake. I ca..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/jesse-owens-11808_apollo_well-i-couldn-t-play-an-instrument-i-d-j_2554072.jpg" --- # Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd just stand up… ![“Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd just stand up front and announce the numbers. They had me sing a little, but that was a horrible mistake. I can't carry a tune in a bucket. We played black theaters and nightclubs all over hell. One-nighters. Apollo Theater in Harlem and the Earle Theater…” quote by Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/jesse-owens-11808_apollo_well-i-couldn-t-play-an-instrument-i-d-j_2554072.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/jesse-owens-11808_apollo_well-i-couldn-t-play-an-instrument-i-d-j_2554072.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/jesse-owens-11808_apollo_well-i-couldn-t-play-an-instrument-i-d-j_2554072.jpg) > “Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd just stand up front and announce the numbers. They had me sing a little, but that was a horrible mistake. I can't carry a tune in a bucket. We played black theaters and nightclubs all over hell. One-nighters. Apollo Theater in Harlem and the Earle Theater in Philly - That was big time for blacks.” [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He admits his musical talent was lacking, yet he performed despite fear of failure **In simple terms:** He couldn't sing well but still tried performing Key Takeaway Embrace effort despite limited skill Themes humor performance resilience Mood self‑deprecating reflective Type anecdotal humorous When to use this quote - nightclub gigs - touring - public speaking - overcoming stage fright Key Concepts Self‑efficacy public perception Questions to Reflect On - How does acknowledging weakness affect confidence? - When is it okay to push beyond competence? A Different Perspective His lack of skill could undermine audience credibility ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apollo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apollo/) [Athlete](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/athlete/) [Harlem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harlem/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Horrible mistakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horrible-mistakes/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Music making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-making/) [Nightclubs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nightclubs/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sports/) [Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theater/) ## Related quotes > [I played on an all-black high school team and we didn't want people saying that we were clowns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-robertson/i-played-on-an-all-black-high-school-team-and-we-didn-t-want-people/) [Oscar Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-robertson/) > [Black theaters are not given nearly enough attention. We need these theaters to be aware of each other, to help each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-uggams/black-theaters-are-not-given-nearly-enough-attention-we-need-these/) [Leslie Uggams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-uggams/) > [“Everyone's redeemable right? We all make mistakes, huge, horrible mistakes, and in the end when we wake up to what we've done, most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/addison-moore/everyone-s-redeemable-right-we-all-make-mistakes-huge-horrible/) [Addison Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/addison-moore/) > [It would be a horrible mistake for black people to say, as some have said, "We don't recognize him..." If you refuse to deal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-e-blake/it-would-be-a-horrible-mistake-for-black-people-to-say-as-some-have/) Charles E. Blake > [To all the kids who looked up to me, I’m truly sorry for letting you down, but I hope it’s helped you learn that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-rice/to-all-the-kids-who-looked-up-to-me-i-m-truly-sorry-for-letting-you/) [Ray Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-rice/) > [Life is full of horrible mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-c-k/life-is-full-of-horrible-mistakes/) [Louis C. K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-c-k/) > [Part of being in a band, being a painter, or starting a nonprofit is that you're going to make horrible mistakes and look like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-hanna/part-of-being-in-a-band-being-a-painter-or-starting-a-nonprofit-is/) [Kathleen Hanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-hanna/) > [That is my principal objection to life, I think: It's too easy, when alive, to make perfectly horrible mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/that-is-my-principal-objection-to-life-i-think-it-s-too-easy-when/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [We all learn here by the honorable path of horrible mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-paterson/we-all-learn-here-by-the-honorable-path-of-horrible-mistakes/) [Katherine Paterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-paterson/) > [The feeling of being an Iraqi unites all ethnic groups within this country. Even the Kurds, who have traditionally pushed for their own state,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zalmay-khalilzad/the-feeling-of-being-an-iraqi-unites-all-ethnic-groups-within-this/) [Zalmay Khalilzad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zalmay-khalilzad/) > [Without mentioning names, it was other people. Some day, they ought to open the report and find out. But it was other people that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/without-mentioning-names-it-was-other-people-some-day-they-ought-to/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [It got so that I couldn't play anything but a Peter Lorre character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-lorre/it-got-so-that-i-couldn-t-play-anything-but-a-peter-lorre-character/) [Peter Lorre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-lorre/) > [She said if she couldn't play, she had nothing left. What about me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/she-said-if-she-couldn-t-play-she-had-nothing-left-what-about-me/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [People told me I couldn't play Division I football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-stills/people-told-me-i-couldn-t-play-division-i-football/) [Kenny Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-stills/) > [Unfortunately I couldn't play as much as I wanted in Los Angeles, because I was playing behind an All-Star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bledsoe/unfortunately-i-couldn-t-play-as-much-as-i-wanted-in-los-angeles/) [Eric Bledsoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bledsoe/) ## More by Jesse Owens > [When I passed the Chancellor he arose, waved his hand at me, and I waved back at him. I think the writers showed bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/when-i-passed-the-chancellor-he-arose-waved-his-hand-at-me-and-i/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [I'd noticed him watching me for a year or so, especially when we'd play games where there was running or jumping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/i-d-noticed-him-watching-me-for-a-year-or-so-especially-when-we-d/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [When I came back, after all those stories about Hitler and his snub, I came back to my native country, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/when-i-came-back-after-all-those-stories-about-hitler-and-his-snub-i/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [Joe Louis and I were the first modern national sports figures who were black... But neither of us could do national advertising because the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/joe-louis-and-i-were-the-first-modern-national-sports-figures-who/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [A lifetime of training for just ten seconds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/a-lifetime-of-training-for-just-ten-seconds/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [The secret is, first, get a thoroughbred horse because they are the most nervous animals on earth. Then get the biggest gun you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/the-secret-is-first-get-a-thoroughbred-horse-because-they-are-the/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [It all goes so fast, and character makes the difference when it's close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/it-all-goes-so-fast-and-character-makes-the-difference-when-it-s-close/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [If you don't try to win you might as well hold the Olympics in somebody's back yard. The thrill of competing carries with it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/if-you-don-t-try-to-win-you-might-as-well-hold-the-olympics-in/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [“In America anyone can still become someone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/in-america-anyone-can-still-become-someone/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [To a sprinter, the hundred-yard dash is over in three seconds, not nine or ten. The first 'second' is when you come out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/to-a-sprinter-the-hundred-yard-dash-is-over-in-three-seconds-not-nine/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [It dawned on me with blinding brightness. I realized: I had jumped into another rare kind of stratosphere - one that only a handful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/it-dawned-on-me-with-blinding-brightness-i-realized-i-had-jumped-into/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [I always loved running... it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/i-always-loved-running-it-was-something-you-could-do-by-yourself-and/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [We used to have a lot of fun. We never had any problems. We always ate. The fact that we didn't have steak? Who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/we-used-to-have-a-lot-of-fun-we-never-had-any-problems-we-always-ate/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [She (Minnie Ruth Solomon) was unusual because even though I knew her family was as poor as ours, nothing she said or did seemed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/she-minnie-ruth-solomon-was-unusual-because-even-though-i-knew-her/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) > [There is something that can happen to every athlete and every human being; the instinct to slack off, to give in to pain, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-owens/there-is-something-that-can-happen-to-every-athlete-and-every-human/) [Jesse Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) [Explore all 57 Jesse Owens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-owens/) ## More Apollo quotes > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Kennedy had made a mess in Cuba at the Bay of Pigs. He had to do something to look good. The Apollo program of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-schirra/kennedy-had-made-a-mess-in-cuba-at-the-bay-of-pigs-he-had-to-do/) [Wally Schirra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-schirra/) > [Apollo?” I guessed… He put a finger to his lips. “I’m incognito. Call me Fred.” A god named Fred?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/apollo-i-guessed-he-put-a-finger-to-his-lips-i-m-incognito-call-me/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [As a former Apollo astronaut, I think it's safe to say that SpaceX and the other commercial developers embody the 21st century version of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rusty-schweickart/as-a-former-apollo-astronaut-i-think-it-s-safe-to-say-that-spacex-and/) [Rusty Schweickart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rusty-schweickart/) > [I think if you were between maybe 6 and 16, there was nothing like Apollo, and I wonder if there can be something like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/i-think-if-you-were-between-maybe-6-and-16-there-was-nothing-like/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Apollo was a big, unwieldy vehicle. I had a problem with the flight controllers over that. It would try to fare its way like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-schirra/apollo-was-a-big-unwieldy-vehicle-i-had-a-problem-with-the-flight/) [Wally Schirra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-schirra/) > [I used to be a street performer, and performances on Venice Beach, it's like playing the Apollo: They let you know if they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cary-hiroyuki-tagawa/i-used-to-be-a-street-performer-and-performances-on-venice-beach-it-s/) [Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cary-hiroyuki-tagawa/) > [I owe much of my success to Seann Walsh. He kept recommending me for Live At The Apollo until eventually the producers offered me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romesh-ranganathan/i-owe-much-of-my-success-to-seann-walsh-he-kept-recommending-me-for/) [Romesh Ranganathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romesh-ranganathan/) > [A typical smart phone has more computing power than Apollo 11 when it landed a man on the moon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-gibbs/a-typical-smart-phone-has-more-computing-power-than-apollo-11-when-it/) [Nancy Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-gibbs/) > [Armstrong, sitting in the commander's seat, spacesuit on, helmet on, plugged into electrical and environmental umbilical's, is a man who is not only a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/armstrong-sitting-in-the-commander-s-seat-spacesuit-on-helmet-on/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [Have any of you taken a look out at Greece in the last, say, hour or so? (Hermes) What? Are they reacting to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/have-any-of-you-taken-a-look-out-at-greece-in-the-last-say-hour-or-so/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“I couldn’t say I was surprised that Apollo hadn’t given me a lot to work on. The jerk was known for delivering little to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/i-couldn-t-say-i-was-surprised-that-apollo-hadn-t-given-me-a-lot-to/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [“As additional precautions, Kranz requested that a two-hundred-foot radio antenna (called a deep-space dish) in Australia be added to the global network tracking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-s-f-cooper-jr/as-additional-precautions-kranz-requested-that-a-two-hundred-foot/) Henry S.F. Cooper Jr > [“He saw her eyes bright as stars; he saw her lips, and was not satisfied with only seeing them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-saw-her-eyes-bright-as-stars-he-saw-her-lips-and-was-not-satisfied/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Among the gods, there is a dispute as to which one of them originally thought of Christianity; or, as they call it, the Great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-holt/among-the-gods-there-is-a-dispute-as-to-which-one-of-them-originally/) [Tom Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-holt/) [Browse all 382 Apollo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apollo/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd just stand up front and announce the numbers. They had me sing a little, but that was a horrible mistake. I can't carry a tune in a bucket. We played black theaters and nightclubs all over hell. One-nighters. 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